Customer Reviews

Ta-Dah

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

If you're only familiar with "Take Your Mama" and "Laura" from the Scissor Sisters' first album, some of the tracks on "Ta-Dah" will come as a bit of a surprise. (But buy both anyway.) First, there are the solid ballads - in the vein of "Return to Oz" and "Mary" from their first album, the beautiful "Might Tell You Tonight" and "The Other Side" are placed later in the album, and come as lamenting love songs amidst a wealth of dance-inducing cuts. And the darker, twisted "I Can't Decide," with its bouncy flair (and Jews Harp played by Gina Gershon) is incredibly catchy for a song sung by someone who's trying to decide if they should commit murder or not ("I can't decide/whether you should live or die/Oh, you'll probably go to heaven/Please don't hang your head and cry.") Likewise, Elton John's co-written "Intermission" is equally jaunty and dark ("Happy yesterday to all/We were born to die.")

That's not to say you can't dance your a** off to this album - there are plenty of tracks designed to help you do just that. "Ooh" and "Paul McCartney" - perhaps the most hyper fan letter ever written to a Beatle - are both excellent reminders of why this band has the reputation it does. And the sole song sung by the totally fabulous Ana Matronic, "Kiss You Off," sounds like she's channeling Goldfrapp and Blondie at the same time - and with the driving beat and laid-back vocals, it works. Great lyrics too - "Kiss you off my lips/It's standing room only for a piece of my pigment/So excuse me a minute while I supply demand."

The lead single "I Don't Feel Like Dancing" is - and will be - ubiquitous, and deservedly so. With Elton John both contributing to the songwriting, and playing piano, and Jake Shears' disco falsetto, it's one of those rare songs that you like the more you hear it. And once you read the lyrics, you'll find there's much more to it than what its name seems to imply.

And that's true of much of the Scissor Sisters' music, which is why they're so worth checking out. They create intricate, fun, occasionally sad, beautiful, and poignant music, which is actually layered with meaning - a welcome change in a "mean what I sing" pop world. But then, these folks are no ordinary pop group - they keep getting better, and they mean to stay around for a while. Good thing, too. (And a quick word to the wise - if they happen to come through a town near you, do not hesitate to see them live. They're one of the best, most fun acts to come along in years.)

Ta-Dah speaks to my inner 70s child and part of my 80s. I could waste valuable time (which you should spend buying this) writing endlessly about how great this CD is, but I'll sum it as quickly as possible. Here goes:


THE OVERALL SOUND REMINDS ME OF:

the best of Elton John, Pet Shop Boys, George Michael, Abba, Times Two, a tinge of Go West, "Xanadu" (as Amazon.com so rightly puts it in their review) and even the harmony of the Beach Boys and Carpenters...


WHY YOU'LL LIKE IT SO MUCH:

Because you can dance AND listen! While the incredibly energetic, fun sound of disco is here and welcome, the often horrible lyrics that genre generated is most definitely (and with much relief!) missing.


TA-DAH IS THAT MOST RARE AND TREASURED OF ALBUMS:

the one where every track's either a winner or at least "not bad"!


AND THESE ARE JUST THE HIGHLIGHTS:

Track #1) "I Don't Feel Like Dancin'"--Do you remember the awful movie XANADU with the terrific soundtrack? This song reminds me of ELO and ONJ's collaboration on one of the most underappreciated soundtracks of the early 80s!!

Track #2) "She's My Man"--At the risk of implying Scissor Sisters borrows a lot from their favorite 70s idols, I've got to say this wonderful, quirky song reminds me so much of "Still Standing" by Elton John. (This is a good thing, though!)

Track #3) "I Can't Decide"--A great tongue-in-cheek song that reminds me of the Beatles if they were writing in the 21st century...any other song about killing someone would be totally out of line, but somehow it works here because...well...it's tongue-in-cheek of course!

Track #4) "Lights"--I can't help but hear echoes of "Grease is the Word" when this song is on, but again, they're echoes, NOT imitation. The power of this album is that it merges great lyrics with undeniably great beats!!!

Tracks 5 and 6 ("Land of a Thousand Words" and "Intermission") are pleasant enough but I can't automatically bring them to my mind and ear right now the way I can all the others..."Intermission" is a fitting title, though, since once it's over TA-DAH returns to its wonderful spirit!

Track#7) "Kiss You Off"--With its Pat Benetar bursts of energy, "KYO" forces you to sing along and you WILL do so, especially if that special someone's got you all hot and bothered.

Tracks 8 and 9 ("Ooh" and "Paul McCartney") are, hands down, the best of the best here. I hit repeat on "Ooh" at least five times before I continued on to "Paul" (a witty and sometimes funny pop powerhouse!)


SO TO SUM IT ALL UP:

Do you remember how you felt when you were a kid and you were worried the second time you listened to a spectacular album you'd find all its flaws?? Well your worries can be put to rest here. Each TA-DAH is good as the last one and that's a hard "feat" to do in contemporary pop.

This album is, in words lifted from it, a party that ain't over `til it's through. I have no idea how I have avoided a wreck while dancing and singing in my car. If "I Don't Feel Like Dancin'" isn't the song of 2006, I don't know what could be; it protests against toe-tapping but is guaranteed to incite full-body motion. "Paul McCartney" is a riot, "Might Tell You Tonight" a very pretty but up-tempo falling-in-love song, and closer "Everybody Wants the Same Thing," while quite vague, is sure to be played in heavy rotation at gay marriage rallies. A rough patch in the middle precludes calling this the best album of 2006, but nothing closes the deal more effectively.

I had never heard of the group but kept hearing about them and was curious. I picked up Ta-Dah! and at first listen was laughing because this was reminiscent of the bad 70's disco crap I grew up with. I hated the idea of having wasted the money so I gave it a second listen and then a third and was totally hooked! I can't even pick a favorite track, I love the tongue-in-cheek "I can't decide", the title track, love "She's My Man" and "Kiss You Off" and all the rest. I am so glad I took a chance and then gave it a second chance!!!!!

When Scissor Sisters came out with theor self titled debut album 2 years ago, they took the music world by storm. Simply cause they had something that the music industry was lacking at the time. Cheesy and lightweight dance-pop that was fun enough to dance to but unserious enough to get on people's nerves. Their sophmore effort called "Ta-Dah" is pretty much like their debut was, unserious, catchy and very much fun but it's a little more diverse with a few ballads and even one rocker. And who doesn't like fun or diversity?. New York based Scissor Sisters comes up in a era where good dance music is rare and the few really good bands can make a bigger name of themselves. Face it, they are far from original. They are not sampling but they are heavily influenced by 70's glam rock and disco and bands like Queen, Bee Gees, Village People, George Michael and even Elton John who co-wrote their first single "I Don't Feel Like Dancin". But their music works fine nonetheless. They release what the audience wants and if you liked their debut you will enjoy this one also.

Elton John's "I Don't Feel Like Dancin" is among the catchiest dance hits around, infact Jake Sheers sounds like the Bee Gees alot when he sings their trademark falsetto. Midtempo "She's A Man" with a somewhat Queenesque sound, is just as good and "I Can't Decide" a Elton John sounding piano midtempo with harps is also fine. If you liked their first hit, floor filler "Lights" follow the same trend and is also a highlight. "Land of a Thousand Words" their second single is actually a ballad, but a good one. Perhaps a little surprising considering they are a party band, but if they want to stick around they rather try to be more varied then before. I don't like cabaret sounding "Intermisson" but "Kiss You Off" with Ana Matronic singing is another highlight. "Ooh" is another disco influenced falsetto inferno that isn't so good, but the funny titled "Paul McCartney" already is better. Next two songs are slower/ballads. "The Other Side" and then "Might Tell You Tonight" which is really good. Closer "Everybody Wants the Same Thing" is the needed rocker, it gives the album the rocky edge it didn't have before and that's a good end to it.

Overll, Releasing a sophmore album is always hard, either you play safe with releasing something simular to the debut or you try a new trend that may also flop. Scissor Sister do something in between, they continue where they left off on their debut but they also improve their sounds a little with some diffrent numbers. Alot of their music is really well produced and will be heavily played for sometime, but I feel like it's not essential. Good for the moment but not something you will not listen to in 2 years time. However as far as it goes, Scissor Sister are fun and trendy now, they make good and funny dance-music and they are improving. Hopefully their third album will be just as good. Recommended buy for a party or before a night out, Scissor Sister will get you in a good mood.

These guys are very talented and very smart and very true to themselves. They obviously master every musical style of the last 40 years, and if they wanted, they could have made 'alternative rock' crap that is selling by the pound in North America and become very rich. But instead, they choose to make pure pop, that is fun, humerus, unpretentious and sophisticated at the same time. They write catchy tunes, intelligent lyrics, and they perform them flawlessly. The lead singer has an amazing voice, there's no other way to describe it. There is not a single weak song on the album. Pick up a copy and you'll be singing along after two plays. What more can you ask from a pop album?

Take two parts Bee Gees, one part Elton John, one part Queen, add a dash of eighties techno and shake vigorously ~ Ta-Dah. When I first purchased this album, I shyed away from it because of the abundant use of falsettos in the vocals. And so it sat, purchased but unused in a pile of music obtained over the holiday period. It was my loss. While I still find the falsetto a little annoying at times, it isn't used on every song on the album and sometimes it hits the mark dead on. The quirky (sometimes dirty) lyrics play along a bouncing beat that remind me of some of Freddie Mercury's more tongue-in-cheek creations. "I Don't Feel Like Dancin'", "She's My Man", and the darker "The Other Side" are more then worth the price of admission, but some of the other songs sound more like enjoyable, well-crafted filler. All in all this is a great second album from a band that deserves attention.

After making both one of the most hailed and one of the most controversial albums of 2004, Scissor Sisters had to find a new path for their much anticipated sophomore album TA-DAH. You have to feel some sympathy for the quirky band considering how do you supercede or surpass a gay concept album the quality of SCISSOR SISTERS. Sure TA-DAH once again affirms the sexuality of the majority of the band through glamorous pop things, but it is nowhere near the level of SCISSOR SISTERS. With that said, TA-DAH is consistent and nearly as good as SCISSOR SISTERS, though it isn't as exciting. Here you don't have the "gay-concept" think as heavily as ingrained as the debut and the listener must rely on the pop, dance, electronic arrangements more as opposed to the lyrics such as "t*ts on the radio" or "I left My heart in San Francisco/ at a motherf**king disco". While there may be no hit the size of "Take Your Mam", the Sisters have definitely still got it, if not to the same exciting level as they did before.

The album starts off strong with the Elton John co-penned "Don't Feel Like Dancing", which would've sounded equally at home in the 1970s on a Bee Gees album. It features great songwriting and immaculate falsetto by none other than the band's quirk, flamboyant, STUNNING, frontman Jake Shears. The album continues to look upward with the consistent, though not as catchy or infectious second track "She's My Man". What is interesting and unique about "She's My Man" is the fact that the chord changes aren't incredibly predictable and the switch of tonal center (keys) makes for an even more intriguing listen. it is quirky, but it is quirky in good ways.

"I Can't Decide" is track of brevity, but it is one of the very strongest on the album with the exception of "I Don't Feel Like Dancing". The track feels incredibly like a "cabaret" performance, yet the novelty-dance feel here is incredibly potent. "Intermission" later on will feature that same "cabaret" feel, but it doesn't quite come over as potent as "I Can't Decide".

"Lights" has nice funk-soul production with a bumping-beefy bass line with Shears's Bee Gee reminiscent falsetto sitting on top. However, the track isn't as alluring as one would hope it to be, but it is above par if nothing else. It is "Land Of A Thousand Words", this album's "Mary" (my favorite track from SCISSOR SISTERS), that is one of the show stealers. There is an obvious slackening of pace along with beautiful orchestration and vocal work here. It is simply amazing.

After the "take it for what it is worth" "Intermission", The Sisters return strong with "Kiss You Off", which isn't quite as strong as say "I Don't Feel Like Dancing" or "I Can't Decide", but is strong enough to be better than most of the tracks on TA-DAH!. After "Kiss You Off" things begin to die and feel like filler as opposed to hits. However, even on the Scissors debut, the end of the album was dull with the very best at the forefront. With this album being no different in this regard, you can't help but to see that SCISSOR SISTERS simply had more obvious hits while TA-DAH doesn't quite make the cut. That isn't to say it doesn't have strong tracks, but not with the exception of the few mentioned trump any of their previous material.

Still, Scissors are one of my favorite new bands and it is ashamed they can't be embraced more. However, in my eyes, this album receives 3.5 stars.

This album reminds me of going out on saturday night, getting drunk and having sex with many women. There is so much influence in this music- from Elton John to Jamiroquai to even the Bravery. They keep it pumping in 4/4 time for the majority of the disc. They rock live as well, I saw one of their concerts on HDNet. This is a disc worth popping in the cd player and spending an evening with your lover, or if your driving to work and need to get psyched up for the day. Always put me in a good mood.

I had the pleasure of seeing the Scissor Sisters perform at the Warfield Theater last month in San Francisco, and as expected, they put on a terrifically entertaining show mixing kitsch-centric glam and disco-driven beats. You can leave your boogie shoes on while listening to their damnably catchy sophomore effort. The five-person band kicks off the disc with the double-clap bop of their radio hit, "I Don't Feel Like Dancin'", which sounds very much like a sly response to Leo Sayer's 1976 hit, "You Make Me Feel Like Dancin'", complete with Giorgio Moroder-style disco riffs and co-writer (and obvious inspiration) Elton John pounding the keys. The gender-bending romp, "She's My Man", is almost as dance happy.

Even though the lyrics speak of committing suicide, "I Can't Decide" seems to reflect Elton's Honky Chateau phase with a bit of Edison Lighthouse's "Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)" thrown in for good measure. Other fun, derivative tracks include "Oooh" with Bee Gees-inspired falsetto voices, the Ziggy Stardust stylings of a "Land of a Thousand Dances", and an intro to "Lights" that sounds like Lipps Inc. reborn. The band drives harder on "Paul McCartney", which doesn't sound much like the former Beatle/Wing; and "Kiss You Off" with a deceptively calm chorale opening segueing into a song that sounds like a hybrid of Blondie's "Call Me" and Pat Benatar's power chord hits.

There appears to be a greater percentage of slower tracks this time around, and fortunately, they make for nice respites - the short, aptly named period piece, "Intermission"; the more conventional-sounding love song, "Might Tell You Tonight"; and the melodramatic "The Other Side", which bears a striking resemblance to Al Stewart's "Year of the Cat" with a saxophone solo and even a sampling of late-period Judy Garland speaking at the close. The disc ends on a rather magnanimous note with the "We Are the World" sentiments of "Everybody Wants the Same Thing". If "Ta Dah!" lacks the nostalgic surprise of the band's debut disc, this one compensates by adding dimension to their trademark buoyant sound.